DIGIWAY: Greater safety in the mountain

Stakeholder Day at NOI-Techpark in Bolzano on December 5, 2024, theme “Geographic data for mountain safety”

The Euregio Digiway project aims to make hiking and mountaineering safer in Tyrol, South Tyrol, and Trentino. Through the harmonization and standardization of hiking trail data from all three regions, hiking apps will offer reliable and uniform information. During the Stakeholder Day in Bolzano, the Euregio Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino and the NOI Techpark provided updates on the current status and agreed on the next steps.

The president of Euregio and governor of South Tyrol, Arno Kompatscher, emphasized the growing importance of digital route planning and the need for reliable data: “We want to contribute so that the corresponding apps can use reliable and unified data for the entire Euregio. By improving trail information, we enable a safer hiking experience that transcends borders in our countries.”

A challenge is the use of participatory and non-validated geographic databases, which can lead to qualitative inconsistencies. The DIGIWAY project creates the foundation for a unified data catalog, which will be available as open data through the Open Data Hub of NOI Techpark. Vincent Mauroit, Director of Innovation and Technology Transfer at NOI emphasized that thanks to close collaboration with Euregio and project partners, digital innovations are emerging that bring mountain safety to a new level.

Two pilot studies along the European Trail E5 and in Val di Fassa will test further innovations. A memorandum of understanding between the Interreg Digiway projects and “E5 Green & Digital” has already been signed by Euregio president Kompatscher and GRW Sarentino president Josef Günther Mair.